Eindhoven News organised a meet-up between the city councillors and various international communities. The political parties that participated were GroenLinks, VVD, Volt, PvdA, PvdD and CDA.
The meet-up is the brainchild of Eindhoven News director Beena Arunraj and city councillor Eva de Bruijn of GroenLinks. The participating councillors were Eva de Bruijn and Gisele Mambre (GroenLinks), Cecile van Bergeijk and Len Snelders from VVD, Wil van Haalen (PvdA), Jonas Roothans (PvdD), Robin Brokmann and Roberto from VOLT. The participating community organisations were diverse and multicultural such as Latin-American, Korean, Turkish, Indian, African, Russian, Romanian and Bulgarian. International student organisations, refugee and LGBT communities were also present.
The evening opened with a keynote from Beena Arunraj about the purpose of the gathering and the role of Eindhoven News in keeping the internationals informed and helping cultures meet in the middle. Eindhoven News, with its expansive international community connections, acts as a catalyst in connecting the Dutch and the international residents.
Eva de Bruijn followed with a talk on city governance and the local political system, an eye-opener for many internationals. She threw light on aspects that come under city governance and those that come under national governance. Then the 50-odd participants were challenged by questions they had to discuss in round tables and come up with suggestions.
The participants outlined vital issues such as housing, education, mobility, collaboration, integration and so forth. There were many key takeaways for the council members. The council members have assured follow-up action and commitment to achieving the collective goals.
Many participants were thrilled about the opportunity to voice their concerns and the reassurance of being heard, and at the same time, follow-up action is highly awaited.
